Total pages in book: 74
Estimated words: 70209 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 351(@200wpm)___ 281(@250wpm)___ 234(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 70209 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 351(@200wpm)___ 281(@250wpm)___ 234(@300wpm)
“At least I have a good role model to look up to.”
He patted my back before he stepped away. “Thanks, son. Something I learned about raising both of you…something I learned just today…as long as you love your kids, everything will be alright.”
“That doesn’t sound too difficult.”
He shook his head. “It’s not.” He walked away and took the seat beside my mother, his arm moving around her shoulders as they waited for me to marry the love of my life. He gave me a slight nod of approval, along with a smile.
The harpist began to play, and the music started. I turned my attention to the house, where a beautiful woman in a white dress emerged. Glowing like the setting sun, she stepped onto the grass in her elegant white dress, her baby bump as lovely as the rest of her. She held a bundle of pink roses, and her eyes were stuck on me like I was the only person there. She looked at me the way I looked at her, like there was no one else in the world that really mattered.
She came closer to me, her movements just as elegant as they were on the catwalk. Her smile was true and radiant, but her eyes welled with emotional tears. Her hair was in large curls that trailed down her front, and the diamond necklace around her throat looked familiar, but I couldn’t recall where I’d seen it before.
As she came closer, the world seemed to stop. I’d never imagined what my wedding day would be like. I thought marriage was for people who couldn’t make it on their own. They needed someone to depend on, someone to give them self-worth. But once I’d fallen in love with Muse, I couldn’t imagine my life without her. She made me weak, but in a good way.
My life was about to be different forever. I would have to love and protect two people instead of one, and I wasn’t included in that number. Muse made me feel insignificant, because her life was much more important than mine. I used to be arrogant and selfish, thinking I had the world in the palm of my hand. And then this woman auditioned to be a model, and nothing was ever the same.
I realized I would do anything for her, even sacrifice my own life.
My body wasn’t hit with doubts. I was strong and confident like always, eager to make this woman my wife.
To call her Mrs. Barsetti.
I wanted to smother her with my life, wealth, and protection. I wanted to put her on a pedestal and make all her dreams come true. I wanted to give her as many children as she wanted, especially when I got to enjoy her looking that way for nine months.
She approached me, her eyes coated with unshed tears. She seemed to be deep in thought the way I was, thinking about our lives together and the family we would make. When she reached me, she stepped closer to me, her face moving to my chest.
My arms wrapped around her, and I held her in front of the priest and my family. I should take her hand and face her so I could say the vows that would bind us together forever. But now, I needed to hold her, to take this moment to cherish the woman I’d already committed to for the rest of my life. “You sure you want to marry me?”
She looked up from my chest, her tears thickening into drops. “Never been so sure of anything in my life.”
Five hours later, we arrived in Positano, a small village on the Amalfi coast. Just an hour away from Naples, it was a scenic route along the mountainside. With windy turns with gorgeous views of the Mediterranean, it was a beautiful sight—even in the darkness.
I would have preferred to fly, but Muse was far too pregnant for that. At seven months, she couldn’t board a plane. So I drove through the night, letting her sleep in the passenger seat, still in her wedding dress. I advised her to take it off for the drive.
But she wanted me to take it off.
We checked in to our hotel, a luxurious place in the heart of the city. Our honeymoon suite had an eye-catching view of the harbor with the sailboats. I carried her over the threshold and into the large suite that we would probably never leave.
I lay her on the bed, her white gown still as stunning as it was earlier.
She was tired on the drive, but now that we were alone in our suite, she was wide awake. She looked up at me with her hair across the bed, her eyes bright and playful. I was leaning over her, so she ran her palms up my chest to my tie. She slowly loosened it, her eyes locked on mine.